[Reader-list] Pakistani ambassador rejected because his name is NSFW in Arabic

[Kshmendra Kaul]

Dear Shuddha
 
Yes, 'Maha-lingam' it would seem would be the equivalent of 'Akbar Zeb' as far as the common recognition of the word 'Linga' is concerned; that it means Phallus. 
 
But then there are commentaries on "Linga" such as the "Linga Puraana" and the "Shiv Puraana" which seem to suggest (judging from some translated extracts) that "Linga" carries a meaning other than Phallus.
 
But you know that. I am sure you do. 
 
Well, in any case, an interesting analogy given by you, as was the French one given by Patrice.
 
This reminds me of how the (nasalised pronunciation of the) Kashmiri word for 'Fish' amuses other North Indians.
 
Similarly one product from the "Girnar" brand of tea quite scandalised all Kashmiris who heard it's Radio-Ad.
 
 
Kshmendra 
 
 
--- On Wed, 2/10/10, Shuddhabrata Sengupta <shuddha at sarai.net> wrote:


From: Shuddhabrata Sengupta <shuddha at sarai.net>
Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Pakistani ambassador rejected because his name is NSFW in Arabic
To: "Kshmendra Kaul" <kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com>
Cc: "sarai list" <reader-list at sarai.net>
Date: Wednesday, February 10, 2010, 7:51 PM


Dear Kshmendra, 


Thanks for posting this delightful item of information.


 It's such a pity that knowledge of classical languages like Arabic (or, for that matter, Sanskrit) is limited, or then again, maybe not. 


The worthies at the Ministry of External Affairs must be thanking their stars that Sanskrit is not understood. Because this is what guarantees that the eventual or hypothetical deployment as envoy of any distinguished personage by the name of Mahalingam (which means exactly what Akbar Zeb means in Arabic) who might be currently  employed by the GOI's MEA, would never be jeopardized. 


warmly, 


Shuddha





On 10-Feb-10, at 7:44 PM, Kshmendra Kaul wrote:


"Pakistani ambassador rejected because his name is NSFW in Arabic"
 
Posted By David Kenner  Wednesday, February 3, 2010
 
Despite having served for years as a distinguished Pakistani diplomat, Akbar Zeb reportedly cannot receive accreditation as Pakistan's ambassador to Saudi Arabia. The reason, apparently, has nothing to do with his credentials, and everything to do with his name -- which, in Arabic, translates to "biggest dick": 
 
"In Saudi Arabia, size does count." 
 
According to this Arabic-language article in the Arab Times, Pakistan had previously floated Zeb's name as ambassador to the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, only to have him rejected for the same reason. One can only assume that submitting Zeb's name to a number of Arabic-speaking countries is some unique form of punishment designed by the Pakistani Foreign Ministry -- or the result of a particularly egregio
us cockup.
 
http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/02/03/ambassador_at_very_large
 
 
Jan-24-2010 
Tim King Salem-News.com
"In Saudi Arabia, size does count."
 
(SALEM, Ore.) - A high level Pakistani diplomat has been rejected as Ambassador of Saudi Arabia because his name, Akbar Zeb, equates to "Biggest Dick" in Arabic. Saudi officials, apparently overwhelmed by the idea of the name, put their foot down and gave the idea of his being posted there, the kibosh.
 
Akbar Zeb is no newcomer to politics, in fact you could say he's a pretty big deal. This long-ranging high level diplomat has worked with some of the largest members of world governments, players charged with negotiating the outcome of the world's current events.
 
He most recently served as High Commissioner Designate of Pakistan to Canada, and prior to that he was the ambassador of Pakistan to South Africa,. He also served in that capacity in Washington from 1983-87, and New Delhi from 1994-2000.
 
He earlier worked at the Pakistan headquarters as section officer from 1982- 83, director from 1987-94 and director-general from 2000-2003.
 
Miangul Akbar Zeb, also whose name news agencies sometimes refer to as Zib, was born on 15 February, 1954. He holds a Masters degree.
http://salem-news.com/articles/january242010/big_dick.php
 
 






_________________________________________
reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city.
Critiques & Collaborations
To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe in the subject header.
To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list 
List archive: &lt;https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/>


Shuddhabrata Sengupta
The Sarai Programme at CSDS
Raqs Media Collective
shuddha at sarai.net
www.sarai.net
www.raqsmediacollective.net